Error Types

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Chemotherapy medications often have complex dosing, which in turn is associated with prescribing errors. This single-center observational study retrospectively examined chemotherapy ordering errors that had been intercepted by a pharmacist-led chemotherapy safety team. Although the overall rate of errors was only 2%, most were deemed clinically relevant. Because a significant proportion of the identified errors were amenable to computerized decision support, the hospital implemented an advanced computerized provider order entry module to reduce prescribing errors in an automated fashion. Noting that many errors were not rule-based, the authors conclude that pharmacist-led error checking remains critical for error prevention. A WebM&M commentary discussed how pharmacist involvement can help improve medication safety.